A Welcome Note

4 years. More than 250 hackathons. More than 72 cities around the globe. We’ve seen it all. And from all of these events, we’ve noticed one thing: Anyone. Can. Code.

Age, race, gender, experience level, it doesn’t matter. Passion and dedication is what you need to create apps and technologies that have never been imagined before. Implementation and creativity are what differentiate you. Mind and skill are what conquer all.

Challenge: #BestMicrosoftHack is a challenge to see the best use of Microsoft Azure cloud. To qualify you must use Microsoft Azure Cloud or one of Microsoft APIs such as: Office365, Bing or OneDrive. Microsoft offers free Azure trials for teams who would like to participate in the challenge.

Challenge: Create a user generated online content community that can be accessed by an app and/or website.

The Hershey Company is looking for a solution that is similar to Wikipedia in terms of user generated content, and similar to Snapchat in the way the information is pushed to followers or friends. The product should allow users to share information, (photos, liking, nutritional content, etc) of their favorite snacks.

Grand prize winner: $2,000 cash to be split among the winning team.

Runner up: Myo Armband (1 per team member)

Code4Impact

The Challenge is Simple. AngelHack’s nonprofit arm, Code For A Cause, is challenging superhero coders to build a technology that will have a positive impact on the world, people, or environment.

The Prize is Awesome. At the end of the 9th Global Series, the top three Code4Impact Award Winners will be invited to the AngelHack HACKcelerator Program. One of these three lucky teams will be flown out to San Francisco, for our 5th Annual Global Demo Day and will pitch to some of the largest Accelerators and Investors in the world, while meeting with leading social entrepreneurs. For more details click here.

Why AngelHack?

By joining an AngelHack hackathon, you are becoming part of a global, connected community of coders, innovators, and changemakers.

Beyond that, an AngelHack hackathon offers the following:

Games and activities to keep you PUMPED! (Nerf war anyone?)

The opportunity to work with other like-minded individuals

Awesome food, and LOTS of it. A hackathon is nothing without tons of food.

The opportunity to learn some new skill sets

Swag on swag on swag!

Never been to an AngelHack hackathon? You’re in for a treat! Here’s what you can expect.

Schedule

Day 1

09:00 AM : Doors Open to Attendees / Breakfast of Champions

10:30 AM : Opening Ceremony and Sponsor Talks

12:00 PM : Coding Begins

01:00 PM : Lunch

02:00 PM : Sponsor Sessions Begin

02:00 PM : Microsoft Sponsor Session

03:00 PM : HPE Sponsor Session

03:30 PM : Esri Sponsor Session

07:00 PM : Dinner

09:00PM : VENUE CLOSES

Day 2

08:00 AM : Breakfast / VENUE OPENS

12:00 PM : Lunch

01:00 PM : Hackathon Ends / Submissions due on hackathon.io.

02:00 PM : Demos Begin / Demos only / No Slide Decks
(If your demo doesn’t work, take us through the code of
what you did and where you got stuck. It’s about showing what you’ve learned and not about pitching an idea)

04:00PM: Winners are Announced / Prizathon!

Schedule subject to awesome changes. Stay Tuned!

Rules

We know some rules are meant to be broken, but you should probably stick by these:

Fresh Code
We all start coding at the same time. This is done to keep things fair. No one is allowed to come in and build on top of previous projects. It’s cool to work on designs beforehand, digital mockups, open source frameworks, and anything else available to everyone, but keep things within fair limits.

Code Review
Winning teams will be subject to a code-review at some point following the event or immediately before winning. This is to ensure that all code used is in fact fresh.

Ownership and IP
Teams have full ownership of everything they build at our events and are free to do with it as they wish.

Team Size
Teams of up to 5 humans are allowed. You can also add 1 cyborg, Furby, drone, or Sphero.

Submissions
Each hackathon has its individual hackathon.io page, which projects should be submitted on. Submissions take place after 24 hours of pure hacking.

DEMO your Hack
You must demo your hack in order to present. No slide-decks or Powerpoint will be allowed. Two minute presentation and one minute Q&A from Judges.

Have a damn good time!

FAQ’s

What should I build?

Let your gut guide you! We usually like to see projects that are innovative, and have the potential to improve or influence people’s lives. Try to build a hack that people can use, enjoy, and potentially scale. Most importantly, have fun with it and try to finish on time. We know you can only do so much in 24 hours, so it’s ok if your project is not perfect (yet).

Anyone and everyone! Our attendees typically consist of junior developers looking to improve their skills, senior developers looking to expand their horizons, designers of all skill-sets, and serious entrepreneurs that can add value to teams. Bring your idea and let’s go!

How is the hackathon judged?

Let’s be honest, y’all can do better than Powerpoints. Which is why we rock with live DEMOS only! No exceptions. To win an AngelHack hackathon, you will have to demo your product for at least 30 seconds, but don’t worry if your project is still not 100% perfected. Projects will be judged based on the following criteria:

Impact: How impactful will this solution be for it’s target audience? Is it scalable?

Creativity: How original is this solution?

Design: How well designed is this solution, from front end through to UI/UX?

Execution: How well executed is this solution from start to finish?

Last thing. In this day and age of #selfies and #squad photos, it’s likely that photos and/or video will be taken at the event. By entering the venue, you’re giving us the OK to snap photos and post to social media.